Unassessed funds: FG to deduct counterpart funding of state govts’ from source

The Federal Government yesterday said it will start deducting counterpart funding meant for the development of basic education in the country from source if state governments’ attitude of deliberate refusal to provide counterpart funding for basic education continues.

Under the Universal Basic Education Act, state governments are expected to provide 50 percent as matching grant in order to access funds released by the federal government for the development of basic education in their states.

However, the inability of some state governments to meet the matching grant had left huge sums of unaccessed funds with the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC).

Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu, disclosed this during the ninth edition of the ministerial press briefing on Monday in Abuja.

Adamu attributed the inability of some state governments to provide their counterpart fund for basic education on corruption and lack of political will.

He explained that this made the federal government to deduct the counterpart fund from the last tranche of the Paris Club refund from all the states that had not been able to access its funds with UBEC.

The minister said: “I must say that corruption and lack of political will among other reasons have been responsible for most states’ inability to provide their counterpart fund to enable them access the matching grant provided by the Federal Government.

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“Having come to this painful conclusion, the federal government decided to deduct from source, part of the last tranche of the Paris Club refund from all the states that have not been able to access their monies from UBEC.

“If this attitude of deliberate refusal on the part of states to provide counterpart funding for basic education continues, then the federal government will have no choice than to sustain its strategy of deducting counterpart funding of states percentage from source. It is expected that in a short while, states will commence accessing their matching grants.

The minister stated that the federal government had spent N350 billion on basic educations since President Muhammadu Buhari took over in 2015.

Adamu said the intervention was done in order to ensure a coordinated development of basic education in the country.

He explained that the federal government’s contribution in the last four years to basic education was in the form of matching grants, special educational fund, instructional materials funds and teacher professional development fund.

According to the breakdown released by the minister, the federal government disbursed N68.4 billion in 2015 as matching and non-conditional grants to 15 states and the federal capital territory (FCT).

In 2016, the government disbursed N77 billion as grants to 29 states and the FCT.

Also in 2017, the federal government provided N95 billion to 24 states and the FCT, and another N109 billion to 20 states and the FCT for the development of basic education.

The minister said: “In the last four years of the Buhari Administration, Federal Government funding of Basic education has increased significantly, despite low earnings from oil prices.

“In 2015, matching and non-conditional grants disbursements to 15 states of the Federation and the FCT amounted to Sixty-eight billion, Four hundred million (N68.4B).  In 2016, grants disbursements to 29 states and the FCT was about seventy-seven billion naira (N77 billion).  In 2017 the Federal Government provided a total of Ninety-Five Billion Naira (N95B) to 24 states and the FCT, and another One Hundred and Nine Billion (N109B) to 20 states and the FCT.

“The disbursements over the four-year period totaling about Three Hundred and Fifty Billion Naira (N350Billion) include, Matching grants, Educational imbalance fund, Special Educational fund, Good Performance fund, Instructional Materials funds, Teacher Professional Development fund, as well as UBEC Implementation and Monitoring funds across geopolitical zones as attached.

“During the four-year period under review, the government of President Buhari provided a total grant of Three Hundred and Fifty billion naira (N350 billion) to fund Basic Education in the country.  This feat has been achieved largely due to political will.”